Object Lust

For once, a steal is featured on object lust:

pic from Bleu Clothing site

Tashkent canvas bootie: $92 (instead of $360)

Syce It

New (and only??) video from DC's own Tabi Bonney....loving the speedboat.

Hang On

Discovery of the week--your local Linens 'N Things has recycled plastic hangers. That are in turn recycleable. That are $1.99 for 10...cheaper than the normal plastic hangers. What a steal.

pic from Linens 'n Things site

John and Yoko: A New York Love Story

This weekend I had a chance to check out the John and Yoko photo exhibit at Govinda Gallery. The small exhibit of photos by Allen Tannenbaum includes some familiar images of J&Y, as well as some lesser known (to me at least!) photos of John's last live performance. There are some touching photos of the period right after John's death, including a few of Yoko that will be familiar to fans of her music. If you like this fascinating duo, you will surely enjoy the exhibit.

Travels Abroad

Warning: picture heavy post. Not very fashion-y I know, but I have to make excuses for why I didn't post for two weeks.











Can you guess where I was?

Is This Actually News?

Gap clothing still made in sweatshops

"This may not be what they want to hear as they pull off fresh clothes from clean racks in stores but shoppers in the West should be thinking 'Why am I only paying £30 for a hand-embroidered top. Who made it for such little cost? Is this top stained with a child's sweat?' That's what they need to ask themselves," says Bhuwan Ribhu, a Delhi lawyer and activist for the Global March Against Child Labour.

This Week

Today: Mother Courage and her Childern at Goethe Institut

Tuesday: Dave Eggers at Politics and Prose; Old Time Relijun at Velvet Lounge; Stevie Wonder at Verizon Center

Wednesday: The Wicker Man and/or The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (OG versions) at AFI; Trap at Napoleon

Thursday: Magic Lantern show

Best Winter Hats Ever

Tsuyumi churn out the cutest winter hats ever season. I got an adorable equestrian-esque hat last year that kept me warm all winter. The details really make the hats classic: vintage deadstock fabric linings, whimsical buttons and great color combos.


pics from Tsuyumi site

Available online at Steven Alan

This Weekend

still from the film

Tonight: Nosferatu at AFI; Blaqstarr at Taxlo Baltimore

Tomorrow: The Get Down at Napoleon; a myriad of Halloween parties that your friends invited you to

Sunday: Singapore Dreaming at Freer Sackler, 2pm; Tea with the Guerilla Girls (!!!) at NMWA, 2pm

Best Scarves on Etsy

Now that it has finally cooled down a bit in DC, we can all get to accesorizing our necks--and sometimes faces if it's really cold--with scarves. Etsy can be a bit mind-boggling to sift through, even if you love handmade things. I've narrowed it down somewhat for you:

Yokoo XL Scarves - OMG these are amazing

Sculptural Scarves by Victoria Jackman - They remind me of rocks on the beach in the winter

Hand Woven Silk Scarves by Spring Chicken - Maybe not as warm as the others, but still beautifully crafted

all pics from the respective etsy shops

Ebay Lust

Children's Accordian--love the colors!

pic from ebay seller

Mid Century Modern Locals

For a (local) dose of mid century modern aesthetics, check out these awesome DC blogs:

Modern Capitol--showcasing area properties that need love, attention and new owners

Shaffthaus--chronicling the renovation of a real life mid century house in DC

If you have an appreciation for the design of this era, or if you are sitting on a pile of cash waiting for a new home to come your way, I highly suggest checking these sites out.


Eames chair pic from DWR

Object Lust

Something Old, Something New Purse



pics from ZO site

Russh

all pics from current issue

During my time abroad, I stumbled upon an awesome magazine that is new to me: RUSSH. I picked it up to get me through the flights I had ahead of me, but kinda tore through it before I got on the plane...whoops. Anyway, the content is superb, as is the styling, since it's mostly a fashion mag, and the layout/features remind me a lot of French favorite Jalouse. It's awesome to see what's happening style-wise on the other side of the world, and the focus on Australian designers is enlightening. Plus, getting a Spring/Summer issue in October is totally fun! The only thing lacking is the writing...frankly, it's kinda bad! (also, no magazine needs 5 pics of Cory Kennedy).

I haven't seen it anywhere in DC yet, but let me know if you have.

Best Song Ever

The Swedes are great at some things...wearing their influences on their sleeves being one of them.

This Week, and I'm Back!

Heya, good to be back. I will post about my time abroad shortly, but until then, let's get familiar with the awesome offerings in DC this week.

Monday: Cause for Drinks charity Happy Hour at Marvin, to benefit Burma Lawyer's Council; Supreme noise show at Velvet Lounge including members of Can and Bastard Noise, and DC locals, 9pm.

Tuesday: Danzig (OMG!!!) at Ram's Head Live, Baltimore

Wednesday: Celebration at Rock n Roll Hotel; Trap with Dave Nada at Napoleon

Thursday: Richard Kern (YES!) at Modernist Society at Bourbon

This Weekend

Friday: "Lars and the Real Girl" opens at E-Street. I always loved Andrew McCarthy in Mannequin and I predict I will enjoy Gosling in this.

Saturday: Daytime, Russian Bazaar at St. John the Baptists's Orthodox Cathedral in 17th St NW.
At night, Styleistics Fall '07 at Rock and Roll Hotel. Get there early for complimentary champagne courtesy of Le Chat Noir 7-9pm. And peruse local designs from local talent like local fashion sweetheart Morgan Hungerford's Muss and De*Nada whose braid scarf we love.

Sunday: Go and say hi to the Meeps staff (Ally pictured above, glasses for sale at the store) who are available to help you with your Halloween needs. Also, they have some choice fall pieces from 40-60's right now. I just picked up a sweet German wool cropped sweater.

Object Lust

D.C.! Fall is here! This means it is time to re-vamp the 'ole wardrobe with some fresh pieces. My goal for the next week is to travel, relax, eat, thrift, and visit covetable boutiques such as Creatures of Comfort in L.A. And drool. I dream of stores like this in D.C. one day. Stores like Circle Boutique on 14th st. have the right idea, though.

Marching along to the neutral theme, here are good ones by the gifted Rachel Comey with nods to corsets and origami. Available on-line at CoC.

Modernist Society Podcast

Check out the Modernist Society Podcast with their September guest, Porochista Khakpour.
http://www.themodernist.com/society/society04.mp3
Next up: Richard Kern (see events bar).

This Weekend

Friday: Two great international film screenings -
Love Conquers All (Malaysia) at 7pm (free) at Meyer Auditorium at Freer Gallery
Losers and Winners (Germany) at 6:30pm ($6) at Goethe-Institut (this is part of the DC Labor Festival and was screened previously at AFI SilverDocs)

Saturday: Trek down to the Richmond,VA National Folk Festival for some of the best music from around the world. Rarely do you witness such great artists for free. One of my favorites, Grupo Fantasma, will be there. These guys have recently been touring with Prince and acting as his house band.

Sunday: Enjoy the day and the city, the weather is supposed to be glorious! A good day for the to visit the gardens at the Arboretum. Or for kicks visit the newly opened Madame Tussauds in Penn Quarter. The site claims that the D.C. location is where "politics meets glamour."

Dolcezza!

Lately you might have found yourself thinking: Where can I get a really good espresso and gelato, not Italian, but Argentine?
I have the answer for you!
Dolcezza!
Located in upper Georgetown (the quaint part, far enough anyway from the crude mallish bustle of lower Georgetown), Dolcezza offers what I have deemed to be the best coffee in D.C. Not just any coffee, but the kind that you can get in parts of the world that know how to make good coffee, such as Italy or Argentina. The latte is a strong espresso topped with a delicate filigreed swirl of whole milk, served properly in a ceramic cup with a dainty silver spoon on the side--a far cry from the oversized, doubled-up paper cup to go that you get at Starbucks.
True to its name, this joint also offers up a billion flavors of gelato, the velvety dark chocolate being my favorite.
As long as you're in the neighborhood, why not get your film expertly developed at Chrome, check out the pretty clothes at Pink November, and get your hair cut by supercrazy stylist to D.C.'s latin elite, Manuel (who recently moved a few blocks and converted his 80s deco salon into a Zen sanctuary)?
Enjoy your day of Georgetonian luxury!

Update since I started writing this: Sadly, according to Dolcezza's blog their espresso machine is currently out of service. You can tell by reading their blog how much these people care about coffee. Let's hope they get it up and running again soon!

Object Lust

Loefller Randall Matilde boots in shiny taupe and a slight wedge at Sassanova in Georgetown. For those who fear change, also available in black at Active Endeavours. If Extravagance was my middle name, these sleek and lovelies would be mine.

Question: are neutral tones like taupe the new ivory? Personally, I think the more skin-tastic the better, that is, for those non-ivory folk like myself.

That's Knit!

(from top: inspirations from Giles, Giles, Collette Dinnigan, Sophia Kokosalaki, Louis Vouitton, Stella McCartney)

I love D.C. for many reasons, one of the most important being the change in seasons. Fall and Winter are my faves; I cannot help but love the comfort and layering of cool weather wardrobes. So, I was grateful for the ubiquitous knitwear on Fall 2007 runways. The quirky elegance and warmth of the extra-long handknit scarves and accessories made me want to start knitting right away.

If you are a beginner, chunky knits are easy and fast and brilliantly more rewarding than paying hundreds of dollars for a designer version. For supplies in the area, I love Aylin's Woolgatherer in Loehman's Plaza in Falls Church, they have a great sale section. At the Green Festival this past weekend, I made some purchases at Kusikuy, a swell fair trade company who works with native co-ops in the Andean region. They have lovely, handknit alpaca miniskirts and sweaters and also a variety of cozy Eco-Tinte Cotton yarn. Now, you can create your own Ready to Wear accessories to wrap around and around and around...

Be Back Soon

Heya interneters...I will be gone for a bit and won't be updating. Fear not, however, as Cathy and Fiona will take over the duties while I am gone.

This Weekend

Tonight: Lust, Caution (!!!) opens at Landmark; Hirshorn Afterhours, 8pm

Tomorrow: Ingmar Bergman films at NGA; Green Festival starts (twas so awesome last year)

Sunday: Melvins at Black Cat;

Rant Time

Top serious rant: WTF is up with the crowds at 9:30 Club? I was there Tuesday for the Jose Gonzalez show and almost lost my shit because of the incessant talking. First off, Jose's music is quiet--singer/songwritery--and dude barely opens his mouth to sing. But the people in the crowd didn't give a shit about the concert-goers who actually wanted to enjoy the music, and they totally ignored the "please respect the quiet nature of the music" flyers that the club had posted up on all the walls. Because the show wasn't sold out, people's chatting was magnified and you could actually pinpoint the perpetrators anywhere in the club, it was so obvious. Why would you go to a show and pay $20 to talk over the music? Go to a bar!

Ebay Lust

Mid Century Modern Chair


pic from ebay seller

Crafty Bastards Revisited: The Small Object

Amid the chaos of this year's Crafty Bastards, we managed to discover The Small Object booth. They had great decorative and functional objects with irresistable printing but this wooden needle case was our favorite. Great for sewers and those who want to pay attention to the little details in life. Bookmark for future stockings to stuff.

Object Lust

Perks and Mini Bad Apple Raglan

pic from Ubiq

Ba&Sh

More awesomeness...I'm feeling the winter vibe even if the weather in DC tries to convince me otherwise. Ba&Sh is a French label, (via She Breathes).


pics from label's site

Laura Keeble

Laura Keeble

This Week

not sure who took this iconic pic of hank

Monday: Henry Rollins at the Birchmere; Mario Lopez whores himself out to PepsiCo, but hey you can dance with him at the YMCA

Tuesday: Jose Gonzalez at 9:30 Club; Trade is playing at Landmark E Street Cinema

Wednesday: Miss Navajo screening at National Geographic Society, 7pm

Thursday: The Blow at Black Cat